The Gospel According to John: "The High Priestly Prayer" Part 1

Series Introduction:

The theme verse for our series is John 20:31

John 20:31 – “…these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.”

The “these” John is referring to are the seven recorded SIGNS/miracles and the seven recoded “I Am” STATEMENTS of Jesus. John focused on those 14 key SIGNS and STATEMENTS in order to show us that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Savior of the World because He’s God’s only begotten Son. God had John write these things so that we would believe and put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ so that by the grace of God we would be FREED from the penalty of our sin and given life to the FULL here on earth and life FOREVER in heaven.

Recap/review/summary:

Sign 1: Water into wine (John 2)

Sign 2: Royal officer’s won healed (John 2)

Sing 3: Lame man healed on Sabbath (John 5)

Sign 4: Feeding the 5 thousand (John 6)

Sign 5: Man born blind given sight (John 9)

Sign 6: Lazarus raised from the dead (John 11)

Sign 7: *(John 20)

I Am Statement 1: The Bread of Life (John 6)

I Am Statement 2: The Light of the World (John 8 & John 9)

I Am Statement 3: The Door (John 10)

I Am Statement 4: The Good Shepherd (John 10)

I Am Statement 5: The Resurrection and the Life (John 11)

I Am Statement 6: The Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14)

I Am Statement 7: The Vine (John 15)

[Today’s Text]: John 17:1-12

John 17:1–12 (NASB)

1 Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You, 2 even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life. 3 “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. 4 “I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do. 5 “Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was. 6 “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. 7 “Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You; 8 for the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me. 9 “I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours; 10 and all things that are Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine; and I have been glorified in them. 11 “I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are. 12 “While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.

[the rest of the prayer]

John 17:13–26 (NASB)

13 “But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves. 14 “I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 15 “I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. 16 “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17 “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. 18 “As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 “For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth. 20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; 21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one; 23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me. 24 “Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. 25 “O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me; 26 and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

We are zooming in today on (v. 1-12)

The two-fold purpose of Jesus’ earthly ministry:

Magnifying God’s glory.

(v. 1) “Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You...”

John 1:14 (NASB)

14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

**Jesus magnified the glory of God in His earthy ministry…

(v. 5) 4 “I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.

*The works, the signs, the miracles.

John 2:11 (NASB)

11 This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.

The man born blind...

John 9:3 (NASB)

3 Jesus answered, “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.

Lazarus...

John 11:4 (NASB)

4 But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

*The work of the cross:

Jesus being betrayed so that He could die for the sins of the world and rise again was ultimately about magnifying the glory of God.

John 13:31–32 (NASB)

31 When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. 32 If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once.

*The resurrection:

The glory of God would be magnified fully in Christ after the resurrection...

(v. 5) 5 “Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.”

*In us:

God answers our prayers so that the glory of God can be magnified...

John 14:13 (NASB)

13 Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

*The Holy Spirit was given to us in order to magnify the glory of God...

John 15:8 (ESV)

8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.

This leads us to point 2...

Intro to point 2....

(v. 4b) “...having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.”

Jesus used similar terminology in John earlier to refer to miracles.

John 5:36 (NASB)

For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me.

Jesus is referring to those works here in John 17, but not just those works… there was another work.

Jesus also had not gone to the cross yet, so this other “work” that had been “accomplished” had to do with His earthly ministry and not the cross nor the resurrection.

Jesus came to die and to rise again, but in this prayer, Jesus is referring to a different work. Work already accomplished… He had already accomplished the first part of it by magnifying the glory of God the Father. Jesus had accomplished the work of MAKING GODLY DISCIPLES.

Making godly disciples.

Matthew 28:19–20 (NASB)

19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

He didn’t say “make converts” or “make Christians”, He said, “make disciples”

This is not a work of the church but literally THE work of the church.

Know that it is not us accomplishing the work but God in us and through us...

(v. 2-3) “2 even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life. 3 “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”

John 15:5 (NASB)

5 “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

First key to being a godly disciple of Jesus Christ is that you have to KNOW Jesus. You cannot be a disciple on someone you do not even KNOW.

“...baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit...”

Look at...

(v. 6-8) 6 “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. 7 “Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You; 8 for the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me.

We are to KNOW Jesus and GROW in Jesus.

“...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you...”

John 14:20–21 (NASB)

20 “In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. 21 “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me...

John 14:23 (NASB)

23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word...

A disciple is someone who KNOWS Jesus, GROWS in Jesus and SHOWS people Jesus.

(v. 11-12) 11 “I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are. 12 “While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.

John 15:8 (NASB)

8 “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

John 15:9–10 (NASB)

9 “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. 10 “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

John 15:12 (NASB)

12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.

Matthew 22:37–39 (NASB)

37 And He said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 “This is the great and foremost commandment. 39 “The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

John 13:34–35 (NASB)

34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Our church membership convent spells out this application of it this way...

1. I will strive to show my love for God…

by spending time daily in the scriptures

by spending regular time in prayer

by participating in church services faithfully

by becoming equipped to serve

by seeking regular accountability

by being a good steward of the resources God has entrusted to me

2. I will strive to show my love for others…

by acting in love toward others

by refusing to gossip, slander or attack

by praying for and contributing to the health and unity of our church

by fellowshipping with church family inside and outside the church building

by encouraging my fellow Christians

by lovingly keeping my brothers and sister in Christ accountable

by respecting church leadership

3. I will strive to make disciples…

by sharing my faith regularly

by doing my part to be an example to follow

by inviting others to be a part of God’s family

by bringing people with me to church

The earthly ministry of Jesus was all about magnifying the glory of God and making godly disciples. So let me ask you, what are you about? Is God’s glofy being magnified in your life?

Do you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?

Are you growing in Christ Jesus?

Are you showing Jesus to a lost and dying world by bearing fruit and brining them the Gospel by what you say and do?

If you are, ask God to help you keep doing it. Ask God to extend your reach and magnify is glory in you and through you.

If you are not? Don’t wait another day, start today...

Memory Verse of the Week:

2 John 8 (NASB)

8 Watch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward.

Discussion Questions: (John 17:1-12)

Why did Jesus want to be glorified? (v. 1-2) Should we have similar motivations?

How did Jesus define “eternal life” and why is that important to remember? (v. 3)

What specific “work” was Jesus referring to? (v. 4) In what ways is this also supposed to be our work?

What is the “glory” Jesus is praying for here? (v. 5)

In what ways did Jesus “manifest” the name of the Lord in the presence of His disciples? (v. 6) How might manifest His name in your life?

According to Jesus, what are the purposes for the Word of God? (v. 6-8)

Why do you think Jesus prayed for His disciples before He prayed for anyone else? (v. 9)

What does it make you think or feel to know that you belong to God? (v. 10)

Which one must come first: Unity in community or unity in Christ? (v. 11) Why is that the case?

How was Jesus keeping the disciples faithful? (v. 12) In what ways does the Holy Spirit do that for us today?

What else were you taught about God in this passage?

What else did the text teach you about yourself?

Did anything else in these verses stick out to you?

How do you believe God is leading you to respond to His word?